More Resin

For the longest time, Defiant had no table. Typical boat 101 layouts have two hangout spots - the cockpit and the salon - both with places to put down a drink.

The salon table was a monstrosity, and I am very thankful to the previous owners for ripping it out. The period interiors when Defiant was built favored densely packed spaces with cave-like layouts, and that table made the otherwise beamy and beautiful midship into a labyrinth. Eventually I’ll come up with a low-profile table solution for the salon, but for now the cockpit is king.

Just one problem. The cockpit table was strangely designed with the hinge screws directly along the joint line of table, and had subsequently come to pieces over time. I considered trying to reconstruct the questionable joint with new teak, but that would be equal parts expensive, time consuming, and eventually problem-prone again in the same way. Like so many things, the best way to solve this was…

More Resin.

Rather than figure it out, pour epoxy on it. So I did.

First I built up a frame with popsicle sticks and packing tape, giving it about an inch of space to build up.

Then I mixed up enough epoxy to both fill the gaps and layer on a ridiculously thick block to support the hinge.

The finished ledge was a little overbuilt, and it needed to be ground down to allow the table to fold shut.

The newly reassembled table fits perfectly. At some point I’ll refinish the whole thing and make it polished, but for now it’s just nice to have the extra bit of comfort in the cockpit.